Case management is needed because, in most jurisdictions, services are fragmented and inadequate to meet the needs of the substance-abusing population. This lack of coordinated services results from a variety of factors, including:
Due to the fragmentation of services, the accompanying inefficiency, and a growing scarcity of resources, some form of case management is used with virtually every population that routinely seeks social services. The variability in social services system configurations has led to many different implementations of case management, resulting in conceptual disagreements about case management and difficulty in assessing its value. Inevitably, many of the same issues will arise in the substance abuse setting.
Case management is a set of social service functions that helps clients access the resources they need to recover from a substance abuse problem. The functions that comprise case management - assessment, planning, linkage, monitoring, and advocacy - must always be adapted to fit the particular needs of a treatment or agency setting. The resources an individual seeks may be external in nature (e.g., housing and education) or internal (e.g., identifying and developing skills).
Advocacy is one of case management's hallmarks. While a professional conducting therapy may speak out on behalf of a client, case management is dedicated to making services fit clients, rather than making clients fit services.